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What is better at predicting the weather than an exhausted, scared groundhog? Almost everything. So Peta contacted Punxsutawney Groundhog Club’s president, Tom Dunkel, with a sweet offer: Pension’s Punxsutawney Phil and his family to a reputable wildlife shrine, and we deliver a giant vegan “weather reveal” cake every year for reveals on Gobbler’s knot. If the inside of the cake is blue, it would mean six weeks more in winter, while pink would denote an early spring.
The composition of the cake could be based on Actually Weather forecasts that create a more exciting revelation. But even leaving the color to chance would be more accurate than Phil’s “predictions.” A meteorologist with Weather Underground, Tim Roche, decided that Phil’s accuracy rate since 1969 has been approx. 36%. More importantly, a ruted confection does not mind being surrounded by flashing cameras and shouting crowds – as opposed to shy, sloping earth dogs that retreat into their caves to escape danger.
If Phil was allowed to live as nature intended, he would hibernate in his cozy hole on February 2nd. He would be able to swim, climb and dig, and he would have built a complicated home with several rooms and even a separate bathroom. His partner, Phyllis, wanted her own burrow, where she would devote to the two sets of the couple until they also chose to build home. These notable intelligent animals would communicate with family and neighbors using their own well -developed system and would look at each other and flute warnings about any threats.
Instead, they are kept trapped in a plexiglass enclosure in a library so that human visitors can gawk on them all year round. The light and climate are controlled to prevent them from engaging in their natural hibernation. And once a year, Phil is pulled out of a giant faux trestub by a group of human handles and pushes out into the air over a sea of ​​tall patrons and flash bulbs. “Phil” has actually been represented by a large number of earth dogs since a version of this sight began in 1887 – and for about the last 50 years each has been held in captivity.
Like many other traditions, this should have been left behind in the 19th century. Phil could easily be replaced with an animatronic groundhog or any of the other smart updates offered by PETA over the years. You can help by asking Punxsutawney Groundhog Club to demonstrate actual respect for Phil by dragging him and his family back to a sanctuary. If the club does not go to Peta’s weather reveals cake, we have offered to send another option: a large thermometer that sounds, “If it is still cold, it is still winter,” which would appropriately represent the absurdity of this tired old gimmick.